The Cornish Engine | Shell Historical Film Archive

Cornwall, UK, is one of the oldest tin mining areas in the world. In their day, the Cornish pumping engines were the most powerful and economical steam pumps in the world. This 1948 documentary charts the history of these giant machines, which were designed and constructed by some of the most talented engineers in the UK. #Shell #ShellFilmUnit #HistoricFilmArchive #Documentary #Engineering #Engine #Engineer #Mining #MiningEngineering #Cornwall #Tin #Steam #SteamEngine 0:00 Introduction: The Cornish Engine 0:54 Cornwall: Tin Mining, Flooding & the Need for Power 1:47 The Cornish Pumping Engines: 100 Years of Service 4:13 How the Beam Pump Works: From Hand Lever to Mine 6:13 The Quest for Steam: Savery, Papin & the First Engines 9:47 Thomas Newcomen & the Atmospheric Engine 11:55 Atmospheric Engines Arrive in Cornwall — & the Coal Problem 13:03 James Watt's Separate Condenser: The Greatest Improvement 16:24 Old Bess (1776), Trevithick & High-Pressure Steam 19:08 The Cornish Engine Perfected: 16× More Efficient 20:18 Inside a Working Cornish Engine: Valves & the Beam 22:05 The Cornish Cycle: Vacuum, Steam & Equilibrium 25:05 Automatic Operation & the Cataract Timer 27:11 Global Spread: Britain, Holland, Australia & Russia 30:37 The Pioneers of Steam & the Cornish Legacy --- Shell’s surprising and captivating Historic Film Archive dates from 1934 and covers a rich mix of topics from technology, science and engineering to craftsmanship, motorsport and travelogue. The Shell Film Unit, responsible for the content, was a highly celebrated part of Britain’s Documentary Movement. Key figures from that movement were involved, including: Jack Beddington, Edgar Anstey, Arthur Elton, John Grierson, Kay Mander, Stuart Legg and Douglas Gordon. Its films were wide reaching, often screened in cinemas and through the non-theatric film distribution circuit, which brought film to educational establishments and organisations across the UK. While many films covered technological themes related to Shell’s activities, others were entirely unrelated and served purely to educate the general public. As Shell innovated in technologies that would provide oil and gas products for the world, the Shell Film Unit also innovated in the technological advancement of film, incorporating graphics and different forms of animation as early as the 1930s. During WW2 the Shell Film Unit was co-opted into war effort, making films for the Ministry of Information’s film division. Its prowess in technological documentary suited the MoI’s need for technical training films. While the name and the medium has changed many times over the years, the documentary tradition lives on at Shell. Its contemporary film team is part of Shell’s multi-disciplinary in-house agency, Creative Solutions. It continues making award-winning factual content that informs and educates the public, now usually released on social media platforms. --- For more information about Shell’s Historic Film Archive please contact: [email protected]